By Mike Morris
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATLANTA — An Atlanta firefighter suffered minor smoke inhalation Tuesday battling a predawn blaze at a building near Oakland Cemetery that houses condominiums and a couple of businesses.
The two-alarm fire broke out around 5 a.m. on the roof of the six-story Oakland Park complex at Memorial Drive and Park Avenue. Doc Chey’s Noodle House and Foxgloves & Ivy, a floral shop, are businesses in the building.
The firefighter was taken to Emory Crawford Long Hospital in stable condition.
Atlanta fire Battalion Chief David Rhodes said the blaze was “impressive-looking on arrival” but firefighters quickly got the flames knocked down.
“It looked like it was gone,” he said. “You think it’s worse than it is until you get up there.”
Rhodes told the AJC that the fire started on an outdoor deck on the roof.
“It looks like there was an issue with a hard-mounted grill with a gas line running to it,” he said. “The deck completely burned off the roof.”
Rhodes said there was water damage on most of the floors and firefighters had to knock through the wall of one unit that opened up to the roof.
Residents of the condos just across Memorial Drive from Oakland Cemetery said fire alarms began sounding around 5 a.m.
“Normally, we get a false alarm about once a week,” said Blake Hodoh, who lives on the fifth floor in one of the building’s 65 units.
He said he was taking his time getting ready to leave when “my neighbor banged on our door and let us know it was a real fire. I opened the door and the whole hallway was full of smoke.”
Once outside, he saw flames coming from the top of the building.
Bebe Allen, who lives on the third floor, went out on her balcony, saw flames coming off the roof and grabbed her cat.
“Smoke was in the hallway,” she said. “I was more terrified about getting my cat out.”
Employees at Doc Chey’s said the restaurant sustained some water damage and had no gas service, but hoped to reopen later in the day. Foxgloves & Ivy, the floral shop, reopened late Tuesday morning.
Atlanta fire crews were also busy before daybreak Tuesday dousing a blaze that damaged two houses on Howell Street, several blocks north of Memorial Drive in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.
No injuries were reported in that fire.
Copyright 2010 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution